38,811 accidents and 20,142 deaths in UP
According to officials, tractortrolleys are fast turning out to be killing machines as most of these vehicles do not follow norms
LUCKNOW: Uttar Pradesh has recorded 38,811 road accidents and 20,142 deaths in 2017 which is the highest in the country, according to transport department’s records.
The most recent example is the accident that was reported in Lucknow’s Para area where a tractor-trolley packed with 58 people fell off a bridge on Tuesday leaving four dead and 50 badly injured.
According to police officials, tractor trolleys are fast turning out to be the killing machines as a majority of trolleys are not visible at night in the absence of reflectors and backlights.
Senior superintendent of police (SSP) Deepak Kumar said police had launched a drive against tractor trolleys in the wake of Tuesday’s incident.
“We have launched a drive against illegal tractor-trolleys. We have fined around 25 tractortrolleys,” he said.
As per the records of the regional transport office (RTO), Lucknow has around 1,937 registered tractor trolleys. RTO officials said there were more than 5,000 tractor trolleys in Lucknow that are not registered and are plying illegally.
According to norms, tractortrolleys should be used for agriculture purpose and the registration of tractor-trolleys and tractors is a must.
Vidisha Singh of the enforcement wing of regional transport office said the department carried out drives from time to time to check the registration of tractor trolleys and ensure the installation of reflectors and radium stickers on trolleys.
“In the recent past, we have fined many unregistered trolleys that were plying illegally and are engaged in commercial use like transporting mud at brick kiln or at construction sites,” said Singh.
Senior RTO officials also blame the state transport department saying since the department was yet to make bus services available at many villages, people had no option but to hire these trolleys as a mode of transport.
As per the records of the Uttar Pradesh Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) of 2017, the department has made bus service available in about 8,082 villages in UP but there is still a long way to go.
Officials said the department was yet to reach its target to expand bus services in 38,000 more villages in the state in the next four years that is expected to bring down the use of tractor trolleys for transport purposes.